Where were you then?

Ok, yes Michael Gerson has admirable writerly gifts. But it's just absolutely maddening to read him in his new life, perched as I imagine him in an office at whichever sinecure sponsors his punditry career where he composes things like this:

McCain has been right about the conduct of the Iraq war....

McCain has been right on the issue of torture. Every responsible member of Congress recognizes the need for interrogation techniques for terrorists beyond asking name, rank and serial number. But McCain has argued that extreme techniques such as waterboarding should not be the American norm.

I wonder if his editors look at him askance when he hands in copy like this, after they've just finished fine-tuning an article about the heinous war he fomented and the torture to which he gave, at the very least, his passive approval. And I wonder if John McCain will read it and ask, If I'm so worthy of your respect, then why did you work so eagerly for a man who tirelessly (and vulgarly) plotted to create the illusion of my indecency?